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DEDICATOllY ADDRESSES. 



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MTISOONSIN 



U^tlnesday Kvetnnff^ January 24, 1866. 



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PDlNTtD ATTHR WlitOOSSiN OAPiTOI. OPPICB, MA.DISON. WIS. 



MC) 



A-DDRESSBS 



HON. I. A. LAPHAM, LL. D., 



HON. EDWARD SALOMON, 



AT THE DEDICATION OF THE ROOMS IN THE SOUTH WING OF THE 
CAPITOL FOR THE 



STATE HISTORICxiL SOCIETY 

OF WISCONSIN, 
Wednesday Evening, January 24, 1866. 



PUBLISriED BY VOTE OF THE LEGISLATURE. 



r U.S.-. 

^ ^MADISON, WIS.: ^.^^5^5*^^''--/ 

Vr. J. PARK, STATE PBINTEB, WISCONSI:* CAPITOL OFFICH. 

1866. 



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INTKODUCTORY. 



The State HrsTORiCAL Society having labored many years 
"UQucr great disadvantages and inconveniences, for v?ant of proper 
and commodious apartments, petitioned the legislature in Janu- 
ary, 1865, for the use of the whole of the second story of the 
new south wing of the Capitol, which was readily granted, and the 
building commissioners directed to finish and prepare the rooms 
for the reception of the Society's Library, Gallery and Collections. 
During, the year the rooms were finished under the direction of the 
architect, E. T. Mix, Esq., and in consultation with the Library 
committee of the Society. The two main rooms are each 5G feet 
long by 2-1: feet wide, and 21 !eet high, which, with a hall between, 
13 feet wide, are lined with shelves and cases. 

^t the annual meeting of the Society, held at the old rooms, 
Jan. 2d, 1866, Messrs. Horace Rublee, James Ross, Col. S. V. 
Shipman, S. U. Pinney and F. G. Tibbits, were appointed a com- 
mittee of arrangements for the appropriate dedication of the new 
rooms. The removal of the Library commenced the next day, 
Jan. 3d, and was so far completed as to admit of the dedication 
exercises on the 24th of the month, which was designated for the 
occasion, and several hundred invitations sent out to the pioneers 
and prominent men of the state, and the friends of the Society in 
other parts of the country. Responses were received from Hon. 
J. P. Atwood, Hon. Arad Joy, Col. W. H. Watson, Gen. H. L. 
Dousman, Col. John Hancock and others. 

While the rooms were lighted, opened, and in their best order, 
ou the dedication evening, yet the audience was so large, tliat the 
extrcises were necessarily held in the adjoining Assembly Cbamber. 



DEDICATORY EXERCISES. 

JANUARY 24, 1866. 



The spacious Assembly Hall was densely filled at an early hour 
of the evening. Hon. I. A. Lapham, LL. D., President of the 
Society, presided. 

1. VOCAL MUSIC — Trio from ike Creation, by some of the best lausioal. 

talent of the City, led by Mr. Joseph Hawes. 

2. DEDICATORY PRAYER— by Rev. A. S. ALLEN. 

3. VOCAL MUSIC— Sacred Quartette,—" Bow down thine Ear." 

4. PRESIDENT LAPHAM then made the following address : 

Ladies and Gentlemen : — On behalf of the Wisconsin State 
Historical Society, I thank you for the interest, sympathy, and 
good will for their affairs, you manifest by your presence here on 
this occasion. 

So far as I know, or have been able to ascertain, we are indebt- 
ed to Eleazer Root, our first Superintendent of Public Instruction, 
under the then newly organized State government, for the first 
efficient movement for the establishment of a Society for the pur- 
pose of collecting and preserving the facts and details of our his- 
tory — past and passing. It was he who was most actively inters 
ested in calling the meeting that was held in the Senate Chamber 
of this Capitol on the evening of the 30th of January, iM4r. He ^u^f 
was, with very great propriety, called upon to preside over the 
deliberations of that meeting; General Wm. R. Smith, our vener- 
able and true friend, acted as Secretary. 

Mr. H. C. Hobart offered a resolution, which was immediately 
and unanimously adopted, declaring that it is expedient to found 



such an institution in our Stats. Gaorgc Reed, John Y. Smith 
and I. A. Laphain, were appointed a committee to draft a consti- 
stitution, which was soon reported, hud also adopted. 

Thirty-three gentlemen present, manifested their earnestness in 
the work by becoming members ; his Excellency, Nelson Dewey, 
then Governor of the State, consented to become the first Presi- 
dent, and the Rev. Charles Lord, of Madison, was appointed to 
the office of Recording Secretary. 

Gen. Smith was requested to deliver the first annual address, 
which duty he performed, a year afterwards, with great credit to 
himself and benefit to the infant society — giving an epitome of 
our early historj', and laying down a chart for the future guidance 
of the Society in the prosecution of their voyage of usefulness, 
then just commenced. 

Such was the origin of the Society, an important epoch ia 
whose history we are assembled here this evening to celebrate. 

For five long years our Society remained in the helplessness of 
of " mewling infancy ;" only a few collections were made ; only 
a few friends were added to our list, and few were the dollars in 
our treasury ! 

But our childhood days were numbered, when, on the 21st of 
February, 1854, Governor Barstow approved what the Legisla- 
ture, with an enlightened liberality, worthy of the great State 
they represented, a law appropriating to this Society, five 
hundred dollars per annum, until the Legislature shall, by 
law otherwise direct, to be expended in " collecting, embodying, 
arranging and preserving in authentic form, a library of books, 
maps, charts, manuscripts; papers, paintings, statuary and other 
materials, illustrative of the history of Wisconsin ; to rescue from 
oblivion the memory of its early pioneers, to obtain and preserve 
narratives of their exploits, perils and hardy adventures ; to secure 
facts and statements relative to the history, genius, progress or 
decay of our Indian tribes ; to exhibit faithfully the antiquities, 
and the past and present resources, of Wisconsin ; also to aid in 
the publication of such of the collections of the Society, as the 



Society shall, from time to time, deem of value and interest ; and 
to aid in binding its books, pamphlets, manuscripts and papers." 

Here is a formidable array of duties, truly — and all to be per- 
formed for the sum of five hundred dollars a year! IIow faith- 
fully these duties have been performed, and with what economy 
this money — subsequently increased to $1,000 annually — has 
been expended, let our well filled shelves and eases answer. 

From the date of this law, we leave our state of helpless infancy 
and enter upon the second stage of our progress, with the buoy- 
ancy and hope of youthlulness. 

Rapid as has been our progress, we have not labored without 
disheartening difiiculties ; among the chief of which has been the 
want of suitable accommodations for the precious articles entrusted 
to our care. It is needless to describe to any here present the 
low, damp, poorly- lighted, almost subterranean apartments we 
have occupied, in the basement of a church. We have been 
compelled to grovel in those dismal rooms ; and, if all desire to 
accomplish any useful thing ; all ambition for progress ; and even 
if all cheerfulness of spirit wert not suppressed, it was certainly 
not the fault of the apartments in v.hich we have been compelled 
to " bide our time ! " 

But all this is now numbered with the past — wc, to day, open 
ihese magnificent rooms, in this splendid new State House. Our 
infanci/ and our youth are past, and wc shall be " of age to- 
morrow ! " 

5. VOCAL MUSIC—" Tke dearest .rpol on earth:' 

6. Hon. Edwaed Salomon, formerly Governor of the State, was then iu- 

troduccd by the President, who spoke as follows : 

Mr. Frfsidentj and Gentlemen of the Slate Historical Society : 

The great German poet and philosopher, Goothe, in his immor- 
tal tragedy " Faust," thus lets Faust discourse while opening the 
New Testament, and endeavoring to translate it from the original 
in order to obtain light and revelation from it for his troubled 
soul : 



"In the beginning was the icord," I read; 
But here I pause: Who helps me to proceed ? 
The Word — so high I cannot, dare not rate it ; 
I must, then, otherwise translate it. 
If by the spirit I am rightly taught. 
It reads : "In the beginning was the Thought.'' 
But study well this first line's lesson, 
Nor let thy pen to error over-hasten ! 
Is it the Thought does all from Time's first hour ? 
It should read: "In the beginning was the Power.'''' 
Yet even while I write this down, my finger 
Is checked, a voice forbids me there to linger. 
The spirit helps. At once I dare to read 

And write : " In the beginning was the Deed!'" 

Yes ; deeds, facts, events form the sum total of the world's ex-- 
istence, its past and its present being. An undiscovered field, the 
future^ always lies before us, shrouded in darkness, except that 
sometimes the philosophy of past events enables us dimly to dis- 
cern the future by judging of their probable consequences. But 
with fleet steps the past constantly pursues the future, winning 
from it the ever varying present, and laying up its fruits and deeds 
as things that were. The present only has reality, the past alone 
stability. The event that has transpired, the deed that is done, 
are irrevocable and unchangeable, are things of the past, events 
of history. From them, by the inexorable laws of nature, grow 
the actions of the present and the future, with all their pains, 
their pleasures and their consequences. To profit from the past 
is the part of human wisdom, that by it we may mould our pres- 
ent and our future action. With all our existence, our civiliza- 
tion, institutions and enjoyments, physical, moral and intellectual, 
we are as much the creatures of the past as of the present, and 
must draw the origin of our present time and life from the past, 
its deeds and events. 

"Who is bold enough to assert that even a single accomplishmen 
of the present age, in art or science or any other branch of human 
industry or pursuit, owes its existence exclusively to the genius 
of this age ? Every invention and every progress, however novel 
or extraordinary, have their foundation in something already 
known. Step by step only the genius of civilization advances, 
and however rapid his strides, his foot-prints are clearly traceable 



by the light of history. Men live and die, ganerations come and 
go, but their deeds live after them ; nations and empires are found- 
ed, rise and fall, but leave their works and their history to the 
profit and advantages of future ages. 

To record the past events and deeds of mankind is the field of 
the historian, as wide and broad a field as human afi"airs are mani- 
lold and diversified. So we have histories of arts and sciences, 
of literature, of commerce, of jurisprudence, of religion, of wars, 
of discoveries, of adventures, of particular men, of States and 
Nations, and of almost every conceivable object of general pur- 
suit, interest or particular prominence. That, however, which is 
most generally signified by "history," is a narrative of the life, 
events and acts of States and Nations. The true general historian is 
not a mere chronicler or annalist of events ; he must assume also 
the character of a critic, and, as it were, sit in judgment upon the 
actions of mankind. He must collect, classify, and truly relate 
the facts, must trace ind study the origin, cause and eflfect of ac- 
tions and events ; he must endeavor to penetrate into the inner'< 
most motives and recesses of the human mind, and especially of 
those whose acts he assumes to portray ; he must recount the tri- 
umphs, the defeats, the errors, the wise and unwise measures, the 
follies and crimes of mankind ; he must " set down nought in 
malice or favor, but present things truly." Hence it is, that the 
history of a great epoch, or a public man, is hardly ever justly 
written by a cotcmporary ; because but few men are so entirely 
above the passions and prejudices of their own age as to correctly 
and justly appreciate the bearings of all things on public men 
and matters of general and public concern. 

The history of a people, nation or state, should not only treat 
of its wars, its rulers, its great epochs and its great struggles, but 
should also draw a faithful picture of the manners of the people, 
their political institutions and life, their .«ocial enjoyments, their 
religion, their literature, arts and sciences, their laws, their virtues 
and their crimes, For as the life of an individual is not only 
made up by his single prominent deeds or acts of moment or im- 



10 

portaace, but by his character, his social and private relations, 
his joys and his troubles, hi.s virtues and his failings, so the life 
of a nation, consisting of a collection of individuals bound together 
by certain political and other ties, has many an unostentatious 
trait which distinguishes it from other nation?., and forms an es- 
sential part of its existence. 

This is true of the history of all nations, ancient and modern : 
although when we read the historical works of some authors, we 
might almost be led to believe that the history of kings and princes, 
their quarrels, their virtues and their follies, constitute the history 
of the people they ruled, aud that the history of mankind is only 
■i narrative of wars and slaughters. When in other ages and other 
countries the destinies of a nation were depending upon the will 
and the acts of a single crowned head, the life of that nation was 
bound up in the life of that man, and his history, is its history. 
The history of Napoleon I is that of France during his reign, 
and the history of Alexander that of Macedonia and Persia while 
he held the scepter of that empire, for in both cases the individu- 
ality of the nations they ruled was merged in their sovereigns, 
l^ut far different and much more diiScult is the task of the histo- 
rian who undertakes to record the events of a people with demo- 
cratic institutions, whose rulers arc wholly or mainly the agents of 
the people and are executing its sovereign will. Thus it is with 
the history of our own country, whose government is the govern- 
ment of the people, whose rulers are but its agents, whoso destinies 
arc in its own hands The theory of our system of self govern- 
ment has been successfully carried out ever since the foundation 
of this Republic, and the people thereof have been and are setting 
an example to other nations how a free people can preserve its 
independence, protect individual liberty, and become great and 
mighty and prosperous. The history of this free country never 
was bound up or merged in the fate of any o)ie man. Its energies 
are developed by the entire people, its strides in civilization, its 
great advancements and accomplishments arc in no instance trace- 
able to the energy and exertions of any one man, who, by his su- 



11 

perior statesmanship, direc-tod the latent energy of flic people. 
Frederick the Great raised Prussia from an inferior j<osition in the 
farsily of independent state?, to one of the great power.s of Eu- 
rope ; Napoleon I made France, for a tirn'^, the most powerful of 
the European nations ; Cromwell made England more mighty, re- 
.speeted and feared than it had been before. We, too, have had our 
great men, at times, directing the affairs of this nation, but the 
genius of our political institutions, well comprehended and sus- 
tained by them, happily forbids our having a Frederick, a Napo- 
leon or a Cromwell. Washington and Lincoln were both great 
men in our history : the one has long since had the name of the 
Father of his Country, and the other, no less deservin:, has been 
fitly called its Savior, and his name is called with veneration 
throughout the civilized world, while his mortal remains have 
scarcely found their last resting place. But their greatness was 
not the dazzling brilliance of the monarch, their achievements and 
the works they raised did not fall, and will not fall, to pieces with 
the extinction -^ f their lives ; what they did to raise and save their 
country remains and will remain, because it is a nation's property 
and not their own. The power of Prussia waned with Frederick's 
death ; France fell when Napoleon was conquered and exiled ; 
England's greatness was obscured when Cromwell went to his 
grave ; Alexander's empire fell to pieces with his dc;it,h ; but the 
country which calls Washington its father, the nation of which he 
stands as the founder, has steadily increased in power and civiliza- 
tion, and even the violent death of our late martyrer! President, could 
not, for a moment, stop the nation in its onward march. The oth- 
er day the bourse, at Paris, experienced a great shock ; French 
state obligations suddenly fell : the money market of that great 
metropolis became seriously unsettled, and a dangerous crisis seem- 
ed at hand ; panic seized the commercial world, and fortunes were 
lost in the twinkling of an eye, because — (be serious, my friends, 
for it was a very serious matterl) — because the little son of LouisNa- 
poleon had caught a cold ! Because a certain little boj in Paris 
was indisposed — seriously sick, if you please — that mighty empire, 



12 

that great nation shook and trembled from one end to the other. 
Nor was this financial shock without good cause ; for when the 
pillars of the present dynasty of France shake and threaten to 
fall, as they did in the sickness of that boy, French finances may 
well tremble ; his death, the death of that tender child, might 
mean another revolution and a new order of things within no dis- 
tant day ! 

Reverse the picture. A few months before this little episode 
in the history of France, the head of another mighty nation 
that under his guidance for four long years had been carrying 
on a most stupendous war with a large portion of its own re- 
bellious people, a war in which millions of soldiers had been 
employed, in which the existence of that nation and its govern- 
ment was at stake, and which was just then being triumphantly 
and victoriously brought to a close — the head of that nation, 
the man who for four years had held its destinies in his strong 
hands and quelled that rebellion, was struck down by the as- 
sassin's hand, at the very moment when the nation under his 
guidance was victorious, but when public excitement was at its 
greatest height. There was no panic, no revolution. The na- 
tion stood aghast as the appalling news spread ; but the gov- 
ernment performed its functions with the same steadiness ; 
quietly the successor of the deceased assumed the duties of the 
highest executive office. One more grave — the most honored of 
all — was added to the many hundred thousand in which lay 
buried the youth and flower of a devoted patriotic people, so 
recently fallen in their country's sacred cause ! Uncounted tears 
fell for the murdered chief, but the institutions of his country, 
•^he functions of the goverrment which he had so ably filled, 
remained and were pursued undisturbed by his death at this 
critical period. 

And yet we had so often been told by statesmen and phil- 
osophers of other countries, that our system of government could 
not long endure, that it lacked stability, and that in a great cri-is, 
or in times of great public commotion, it would fall to pieces fo^ 



13 

want of power and coherence. We have made false their pro- 
phecies in more than one respect ; so far our Republic has proved 
the most stable of all forms of government. Whence arises this 
difference? It lies in the fact already adverted to, that ia our 
form of government, its stability, its endurance, and the develop- 
ment and progress of the people under it, do not depend upon any 
outside impulse, or upon the energy or capacity of any one man, 
or of a few men who are called upon to administer the affairs of 
government, but it depends upon the virtue, the intelligence and 
capacity of the entire jyeople. They hold theoretically and prac- 
tically the power of government, and the development of their re- 
sources, alone in their own hands, and as long as iJiey will prove 
true to democratic republican institutions, these will expand and 
remain intact. The Republic will fall when its citizens cease to 
be republicans, not sooner ! 

Thus we have illustrated why it is more difhcult to write the 
history of a republic, the history of our nation, than that of a 
monarchy where the cause of events is more easily perceived. Here 
the historian has to study the character of the entire people with 
that same scrupulous adherence to truth that, in other countries, he 
must bestow upon the character of the reigning prince whose will 
or whim shapes the destiny of his people. Our public debates, ia 
and out of the legislative halls, our widely diffused public organs, 
the newspapers, the individual character of our prominent public 
men, our ordinary pursuits, our political campaigns preceding 
every important election, the acts of our highest executive officers, 
both state and national, our constitution and system of laws, the 
administration of justice, our system of education, all these and 
many other subjects in which the character of the people and their 
institutions are brought to public Hfe, must be carefully investiga- 
ted and studied by the future historian who undertakes to write 
the history of our own time and country. 

I may be permitted to advert here, for further illustration, to 
another subject which for the past five years has engrossed the at- 
tention of this nation, and which in future will form one of the 
most interesting chapters in the history of our country — the south- 
ern rebellion, its causes and its suppression by the gigantic war 
just closed. It is now, I believe, universally acknowledged that 



14 

the cause of this fearful rebellion was the institution of African 
slavery, on which was built in a great measure, or supposed at 
least to rest, the wealth and power of the rebellious states. Many, 
it is true, have maintained that this rebellion and this war would 
have been avoided if there had not been in the northern states an 
ever increasing anti-slavery sentiment and agitation, while others 
as strongly assert that the immediate cause of the war was the 
growing pro-slavery sentiment of the south, and the demands and 
insolence of those who were wedded to an extension and perpetua- 
tion of slaver3\ Both assertions, I believe, are true. 

Had the North yielded to the demands of the slave-holding pow- 
er, si ivcry would have become nationalized, and the South would 
not have rebelled ; and, on the other hand, if the extention and 
perpetuation of slaverj^ had not been the end and aim of all south- 
ern political exertions ; if the people of the South had yielded to 
the anti slavery sentiment of the northern people, and I may well 
say of the civilized world no war would have desolated their tair 
land, hurling slavery from its throne by fire and sword, and for- 
ever burying it under the ruins of its false and wicked greatness. 
But it was written in the book of fate, that this fierce contest 
should arise to annihilate .1. wrong, which otherwise, under the 
most favorable circumstances, could not have been peacefully ab- 
rogated for generations to como, since the Constitution in times of 
peace forbade an interference on the part of Congress with the 
domestic affairs of the States. Yv hen the slave-holders found thar. 
they were defeated in their schemes of extending and nationalizing 
their fell institution, they made rebellion and raised war against 
the very Government which had sheltered, and protected, and never 
wronged them. To them may now fitly be applied Milton's words 
which he wro:e of the rebellion in Heaven, waged against the 
Most High by Satan, who 

"When impious aim 
Against the throne and monarchy of God, 
Raised impious war in Heaven, and battle proud, 
With vain attempt. Him the Almighty Power 
Hurl'd headlong flaming from the etherial sky, 
Wi'h hideous ruin and combustion." 



15 

As our government is one of the people, so this war was the peo- 
ple's war ; it proved <7te/r power and strength and resources, their 
devotion and endurance. It is a fact well worthy of note, that the 
fiercer and hotter and bloodier the contest grew, the more sacri- 
fices it demanded, the more determined became (he people in sup- 
port of its government. The triumphant majority by which Mr. 
Lincoln was re-elected President in 1861 exceeded by far that 
which made him President four years before that time. I need 
not remind you, my friends, of the exciting scenes through which 
we all passed during this war, how by hundred thousands only 
were counted the men that the Covernmcnt again and again de- 
manded and received ; how the father followed his son to avenge 
his death, and the brother his brother to fight side by side with 
him ; how battle followed battle in swift and terrible succession ; 
how the brave citizen soldiers never faltered, but shed their heart's 
blood, and laid down their noble lives upon the altar of their coun- 
try, without murmur or complaiut • how the mothers and sisters 
and wives of our brave soldiers vied with them in their devotion 
and patriotism, and succored, aided and nursed the sick and 
wounded ; how from a peaceful nation of farmers and merchants 
and mechanics we had suddenly become the most warlike people 
of the world, in order to maintaiu, what was most dear to us, our 
country, its Government and free institutions. 

One day, when I had the honor to occupy the executive chair in 
yonder room below in this capitol, a wcniau came to me, and with 
tremblimg voice asked for a writing from me that she might go 
unhindered far down to the seat of carnage and destruction, to 
bring home her only brother who was lingering at the point of 
death in a hospital on the banks of the Mississippi. She was clad 
in black, with pocr attire, for, alas, she had already lost her father, 
who fell upon the battle field, and her husband, who, too, had died 
in the service, stricken down by disease. Her simple request was 
readily granted. A few weeks afterwards she again appeared ber. 
fore me with a face smiling through tears, and accompanied by a 
young man in a soldier's garment, who was still showing the ef- 
fects of past disease. 'Here is my brother," she said, ''I took him 



16 

from the hospital and brought him home ; I stole him away, for 
they would not let him go with me, and the poor boy would have 
died down there if I had left him, He is now sufficiently restored 
to return to his regiment, but he is reported as a deserter because 
I took him away without permission. Here he is now ready to re- 
turn and do his duty, I hope he will not be punished as a deser- 
ter, for he never meant to desert the flag. He is well again, and I 
can now return him to his country." 

That was a woman's devotion to her country's cause. Many, 
many such oases adorn the unwritten history of this war. She was 
a plain American woman with the spirit of a Spartan mother. 
Such simple incidents show the character of this war, and their 
preservation will aid the student in future generations to compre- 
hend the nature of this mighty struggle and the spirit of the peo- 
ple who were engaged in it. 

Truly remarkable is the interest with which the great mass of 
the people followed the vicissitudes of this contest of arms ; with 
what accuracy of observation they followed the movements 
of the contending forces, how eagerly they sought for in- 
formation from the scat of military operations, and studied 
the details of a great battle, and the fervor of their patriotic devo- 
tion was equalled by their undoubting faith in the final triumph 
of our just cause. It was not a blind, fanatical zeal which prompt- 
ed their untiring efforts, and upheld their courage even in the 
darkest days of our struggle ; but it was the consciousness which 
sprang from an intelligent conviction of the rectitude of the cause, 
and of the power of the nation's strength ; a consciousness found-^ 
ed upon an enlightened patriotism and a correct understanding. 

A little more than two years ago I met in one of the western 
villages ©f our State a simple blacksmith at his anvil, and on en- 
tering into conversation with him on that subject, which then 
filled the minds and thoughts of all, I was much struck by the 
breadth and correctness of his information concerning the move- 
ments of the armies in the field, the past and impending battles, 
the strength and organization of the army, and the commanders 
of corps and divisions. By his logical, common-sense views, his 
clear perception and accurate statement of the situation at the 



17 

seat of war, he might have put to shame maoy a learned student, 
and perhaps many a blundering general, and curiously I inquired 
how he, the simple mechanic, whose daily toil and labor apparent- 
ly required his constant attention, had been enabled to obtain 
such knowledge and information. He replied that it was from the 
constant and attentive reading of newspapers containing accounts 
of the war with which he generally occupied his eyenings. " I 
have two sons in the army," he added, "and the fate of our 
country is at stake in this war ; if I was not too old a man. I too 
should have joined the army long since." 

Yes, indeed, it was the people's war when the plain mechanic, 
and the toiling tiller of the soil, after the performance ot the day's 
hard labor, could sit down in the evening, and, with scrupulous at- 
tention, read and study the movements of those great armies, and 
apply himself to solve the problems of the statesman and the war- 
rior. 

But how can the historian do justice to that part of this great 
drama which the soldier performed ? How can he truly relate 
the bravery, endurance, and heroism of many hundred thousand 
loyal, stalwart men and youths who fought, and bled, and suf- 
fered through four long years to uphold the " Stars and Stripes?" 
It is now a well established fact, acknowledged even by European 
soldiers by profession, who had an opportunity to judge, that the 
American soldiery, the rank and file of the great Union army, 
in every material point, not only equalled the best armies ever 
marshalled in hostile array, but in one important particular, that 
of intilligence, surpassed them. And yet they were not trained 
to this pursuit by long years ot patient practice and instruction; 
from far different vocations and peaceful employments did they 
all come, [and were hurried to the battle field without more than 
a few weeks', nay, days' even, sometimes, of the most necessary 
instructions in military movements. And yet, this may truly be 
said that, whenever they were repulsed or defeated in battle, it 
was not for lack of courage or patrioism, but from some circum- 
stance beyond their control, or by the fault of some commander. 
No danger is there that the most prominent military leaders of 
the great Union army will not receive due credit from us as well 
2 



18 



as from posterity for all that tlaey accomplished; their names and 
deeds are indelibly written as well in the hearts of a grateful 
people whom they led to victory, triumph^ and peace, as in the 
records of war ; but the deeds of the others less prominent, and 
yet, perhaps, no less deserving, and especially the heroism of the 
" common soldier" should have a more enduring monument than 
any monument of stone or metal. 

"Forget not our wouuded companions who stood 
In ihe days of distress by our side; 
While the moss of the valley grew red with their blood, 
They stirr'd not, but conquer'd and died." 

When General Grant had executed his ever memorable and 
daring enterprise of running the blockade of Vicksburg, which 
enabled him to take his army to the south side of that formidable 
rebel stronghold, and afterwards to surround and conquer it, all the 
eyes of the civilized world were turned towards him with admira- 
tion, and those of the loyal people of this Republic with gratitude 
also ; but how many arc there amongst a thousand, or a million 
even, who can give the names of those brave and daring men that 
volunteered to man the ships that were destined to run this fiery 
ordeal? And, yet their deed deserves immortal fame. Who will 
collect and put in form and shape for preservation the tales of 
the uncounted incidents of extreme valor, unsurpassed bravery, 
uncomplaining endurance, unflinching self sacrifice and most ex- 
alted patriotism ? 

This was the people's ivar, and it is the i^eoples duty to see 
to it that the fame of its brave sons is not lost, or the memory 
of their deeds die with those who saw them done. It is the * 
duty of the present age to preserve the facts and incidents of 
this great struggle in all its ramifications. There is not a town 
or hamlet in this State that has not some facts worthy of preser- 
vation in the annals of time concerning this war, and the part 
which its people took in it, facts that centuries hence will be 
eagerly sought for, and that the historian will value to exemplify 
and to correct his judgment. Those who labored, fought or fell 
in this mighty contest, did so for their country, for us and pos- 



19 

terity, and in justice to them, see to it, fellow-citizens, that the 
memory of their exertions is not forgotten. 

And here it is where the usefulness of this society, this State 
Historical Society, receives its great importance. It should be 
the receptacle of every important fact and event connected with. 
the history of our State and its people ; its archives should be 
the record from which the historian can gather the facts for his 
work. What I have said in this connection, of the late rebellion 
and war, because it is so important of itself and furnishes the best 
example, is equally true of everything that pertains to the past or 
present or future history of our young and noble State. Whoever 
is in possession or within reach of any facts or things of value in 
our history as a State, or any part thereof, let it be given to this 
Society, by it to be treasured up and kept from destruction and 
oblivion. Things of historic value scattered among the people, 
and only preserved as relies in families, are easily lost and come 
to the eye and knowledge of but few, but if dedicated to this So- 
ciety, become the property of this and future generations, and 
their benefit will thus be saved. 

The noble enterprise ot the few men who have formed and ex- 
pended and labored for this Society, has accomplished much, 
when we consider the brief period of its existence, the meagre re- 
sources at its command, and the obscurity in which it had to toil. 
As the work of these men is for the benefit of the entire people of 
the State, both State and people should assist them, and in time 
the Society will be made, what it deserves to be, one of the 
proudest institutions of the State, and one of greatest and best 
ornaments. 

With the dedication of its new and capacious rooms in this 
Capitol, which we celebrate on this occasion, commences, under 
most auspicious circumstances, a new era in the life of this So- 
ciety. For the first time, I believe, it is thus brought prominently 
before the people, henceforth, as it deserves, to attract the atten- 
tion of every one who visits the capitol, and to be constantly be- 



20 

fore the eyes, and witliia the reach, of the representatives of the 
people at their annual assembling for the purposes of legislation. 
And that at a time when the value of historic researches, and of 
the preservation of the facts of history, must be apparent to the 
most superficial observer of human affairs ; at a time when, in the 
young life of this State, as of every loyal State of the Union, we 
have just closed a period of most painful yet proud events, when 
the tattered and torn and blood-stained flags of our regiments that 
are he;e deposited were the mute, yet now so eloquent witnesses of 
the patriotism, the heroism and sufferings of so many thousands of 
the brave sons of this State, and remind us that we should have a 
common depository of these events. Thanks to the energy of the 
founders of this Society, we have such a depository. May the 
people of the whole State recognize its value, and assist and supi 
port it in its useful, disinterested and noble efforts ! 

7. VOCAL UVSIC— ' 'Star Sj)angled Ban7ier:' 

8. BENEDICTION— by Rev. Mr. ALLEN. 

President Lapham then invited the audience to pass into the 
Historical Rooms, where the ample cases of Books, Art-Gallery, 
Cabinet and Curiosities were examined with interest. 



APPENDIX.— No. 1. 



ORIGIN OF THE SOCIETY. 



When an organization, like that of the State Historical 
Society of Wisconsin, attains to permanence, prominence, 
and usefulness, the inquiring mind very naturally asks — to 
whom are we indebted for its inception, and what were its feeble 
beginnings, its struggles, its progress, and its final progress? 
This Society has had for its history very similar experiences to 
kindred institutions — an early organization by the foresight of a 
hopeful few, followed by neglect, a brief sickly existence, and an 
early death ; and subsequently resuscitated again and again. 
Like a little child first learning to walk — starts a few steps, loses 
confidence, and falls ; then carefully rises, and renews the experi- 
ment, gaining strength, and hope, and trust in each successive 
eflfort — or, like the old Kentucky hunter, his trusty gun, which 
had caused thousands of buffalo, deer and other game to bite the 
dust, once accidentally failing him, he would " pick the flint, 
and try the old rifle again." 

The reminiscences of Mr. Lapiiam, in his dedicatory addressi 
have revived old-time recollections in the memories of several of 
the pioneers who participated, more or less, in the movements 
towards the organization of a Historical Society, prior to, and 
which culminated in, the formation of the present permanent and 
prosperous institution. It has been deemed advisable to group 



22 

these reminiscences together, while yet within our reach, and place 
them upon record for preservation and reference. 

So far as the evidence goes, Kiciiard H. Magoon, an early 
pioneer settler of what is now La Fayette county, and a participa- 
tor in the Black Hawk war, was the first person in Wisconsin to 
suggest the formatioa of a Historical Society. C. C. Britt, now 
of Portage, writes under date 8th March, 1866 : " My recollec- 
tion is, that sometime in the fall of 1845, while I was publishing 
the Mineral Point Democrat, Richard H. Magoon, of La Fayette 
county, in the course of a conversation upon matters of interest 
to the then Territory, suggested the organization of an Historical 
Society, to collect, from the pioneers then alive, such facts in 
regard to the early history of Wisconsin, as they might possess, 
as well as to treasure up those occurring in the future. The 
importance of the matter was to me so self-evident, that I at once 
called public attention to the project, feeling, that having been 
mentioned, it was already " on foot," though up to that interview 
with Mr. Magoon, I had no knowledge that the subject had ever 
been broached in Wisconsin." 

Mr. Britt's article appeared in the Mineral Point Democrat 
of Oct. 22, 1845, and was as follows : 

"Wisconsin Histoeical Societt. — A project, is on foot for the oi'ganiza- 
tion of an Historical Association, liaving for its object the collection of 
historical information in regard to Wisconsin. It strikes us that this is one 
of the most laudable, and at the same time, feasible, undertakings of the 
present day. Now, too, is the proper time to move in the matter, while 
we have such ample facilities for getting at the truth. There are hundreds 
of men now in Wisconsin who could furnish much valuable information 
relative to the early history of the Territory, and who would gladly become 
members of an association of the kind alluded to. A few years more, and 
they will have passed away, and the future people of Wisconsin will seek 
in vain for the information which they can now communicate. Therefore, 
noio is the time to act. What say you, brethren of the press, will you help 
to keep this ball in motion, until the object is attained?" 

This notice was transferred to the Madison Argus of Oct. 28, 
1845, then conducted by Simeon Mills, John Y. Smith and 
Benjamin Holt, and warmly endorsed by the editors. Mr. Britt 



23 

adds in his letter — " Well, this notice of mine was generally cop- 
ied by the press of the Territory, eliciting favorable responses.'" 
Gen. Wm. R. Smith writes that he well remembers Britt's article- 
and adds : " I and others about Mineral Point were calling the 
attention of the public to this desirable matter ; hence the publica- 
tion in the newspaper. Nothing, however, was defined — nothing 
proposed ; the public attention was merely sought to be aroused 
on the subject of the formation of an Historical Society. The 
several meetings which took place afterwards, having this matter 
in view, were, in all probability, the result of public attention 
having thus been aroused." 

As Madison was then the focus for such gatherings, and the ses- 
sions of the Territoriol Legislature the occasion when the promi- 
nent men of the Territory met ; but the brief session from Jan. 
5th to Feb. 3d, 1846, passed away, and nothing was done towards 
effecting an organization. 

Meanwhile the Mineral Point Democrat, having ceased to exist, 
Mr. Britt assisted his brother-in-law. Gen. John A. Brown, in 
conducting the Milwaukee Cour!n\ in which, in September, 1846. 
he renewed his faithful appeals, in behalf of his favorite project, 
in this wise : 



"Wisconsin Historical Society.— A project was broaclietl last fall by 
one of our editorial brethren in the Western part of the Territory, in favor 
of organizing a Territorial Historical Society, having for its object the col- 
lection and preservation of all such facts as may be of interest connected 
•with the history of Wisconsin, from its earliest settlement down to the 
present day. We had hoped to see an organization of this kind effected at 
the Capitol during the last session of the Legislature, but unfortunately 
nothing was done to accomplish the desired object. As the paper which 
first spoke of this matter has ceased to exist, and the proposition not being 
renewed by any of our editorial brethren, we would x-espcctfully suggest 
that an effort be made to effect the organization of a society by calling a 
meeting at the Capitol during the session of the Convention to frame a 
State Constitution, to reassemble, if necessary, to complete the organiza- 
tion during the coming session of the Legislature. 

" The reasons for selecting the time above mentioned are obvious, for then 
there will be a larger number of our fellow citizens at the Capitol than at 
any other period of the year, and, consequently, an organization can be ef- 
fected with little, if any, extra expense of either time or money. What say 
you, brethren of the press — aye or nay?"' 



24 

Beriah Brown thus responded in the Madison Democrat of 
Sept. 25, 1846 : " A good suggestion, which we hope the editors 
of the Territory will press upon those interested in the matter. 
Now is the time for action upon the subject. Facts of the great- 
est interest in our history can now be collected and preserved with 
little trouble which may, in a few years, be lost, or obtained with 
the greatest difficulty. During the session of the ConventioH 
would probably be the best time that could be fixed upon for this 
object, as every portion of the Territory will be more fully repre- 
sented than it would probably be at any other time, and many of 
the early settlers will be here to contribute much to the informa- 
tion sought to be preserved." Several other papers also warmly 
commended the suggestion. 

The first Constitutional Convention assembled at Madison oa 
the 5th of October, 1846, and was composed of many of the 
ablest men in the Territory. Hon. Thomas P. Burnett, of 
Grant, was among the number ; but from illness he was unable 
to reach Madison until the 14th of the month, What followed, 
and his connection with it, may be seen from the statements of 
Hon. Geo. Hter, and Hon. A. Hyatt Smith : 

Madison, March 13th, 1866, 

Dear Sir: — My recollection as to the first effort to establish a State 
Historical Society in AVisconsin, is this : Several of the papers of the then 
Territory had urged the formation of such a society, and it was in accord- 
ance with such suggestions that several of the members of the first Con- 
stitutional Convention met in the Library room of the old Capitol to 
consult together in relation to the matter. I remember seeing the written 
notices posted for the call, and am under the impression that I wrote and 
posted the notices under which the first meeting was held. My interest in 
the formation of a Society was such as to leave these circumstances quite 
fresh, though many years have intervened. 

Two or three meetings for that purpose were held during the session of 
the Convention, and a Society organized by the election of officers. I was 
a member of the Convention, and distinctly remember meeting with other 
delegates, and urging the necessity for such a Society ; but I cannot now 
recall the proceedings sufficiently clear to name the officers chosen. My 
impression, however, is that Hon. Morgan L. Martin was chosen President 
of the Society, though I think he was not present at the time. 

I well remember the interest taken in it by Judge Burnett, who addressed 
the first meeting, urging the necessity of such a Society, and he was really 



25 

the moving spirit in the undertakine. He was a man of education, and saw 
at once the importance of such a Society in its relations to the future of 
"Wisconsin. Gov, Doty, Thos. W. Sutherland, Hon. A. Hyatt Smith, Gen. 
Wm. E. Smith, Hon. D. A. J. Upham and others also took part in this organ- 
ization; and, I think, Hon. A. Hyatt Smith was chairman of the first meet- 
ing. I doubt not facts and circumstances forgotten by myself will be still 
fresh in the memory of the survivors of those who participated in the 
movement, who at that time, and since have taken so deep an interest in 
the early history of Wisconsin. 

Very truly yours, 

GEORGE HYER. 
L. C. DBArER, Esq. 

Hon. A. Htatt Smith states, as the best of his recollection, 
that early in the session of the Convention, he, toge ther with 
Judge BuENETT, Gov. Doty, Gen. Smith, T. W. Sutherland, 
Geo, Hyer and a few others, met one evening in Judge Bur- 
nett's room, at Morrison's American Hotel, when the subject of 
forming a Historical Society, which had been suggested in the 
Territorial papers, was talked over, its importance recognized, 
and a meeting agreed upon ; which was held in the Library room 
of the old capitol — Judge Burnett, and Gov. Doty, taking 
special interest in the movement. This preliminary interview, 
and first meeting, took place in October, between the 14th, 
when Judge Burnett arrived, and the 25th, when he left for 
home on the reception of a message of the illness of his wife of 
typhoid fever ; his former illness, the exposure of the journey 
day and night, caused a relapse in his own case, and both himself 
and wife died the same day, November 5th, ensuing. This circum- 
stance fixes the time, pretty nearly, of the first meeting, and the \ 
formation of the Wisconsin Historical Society ; at which ^ 
there were about a dozen persons in attendance. Mr. Smith, 
furthermore, thinks, that he was chosen chairman of the first 
meeting ; that a constitution was adopted, providing for life 
and other members ; that the officers chosen were to continue 
in office only till January ensuing, when the annual meeting 
was to be held ; and that the officers thus chosen for the remainder 
of year, were: Hon. A. Hyatt Smith, President; Hon. Thos. 
P. Burnett, and Hon. James D. Doty, Vice Presidents ; E. M, 



26 

Williamson, Treasurer; and Thomas W. Sutherland, Secre- 
tary. That several meetings were held during the session, and 
Gov. Doty was chosen to deliver the first address before the 
Society at its annual meeting in January ensuing. 

That at the annual meeting, soon after the commencement of 
the Legislative session, in January, 1847, Gov. Doty failed to 
deliver the address ; and that Hon. M. L. Martin was chosen 
President of the Society for the year, and Messrs. Williamson 
and Sutherland re-elected Treasurer and Secretary ; and the 
newly chosen President designated to deliver the address — which, 
however, he did not do during that organization. As a further 
corroboration of this early movement, Hon. D. A. J. Upham, a 
member of the first convention, writes : "There was such a Society 
formed at the time of ^^the first Constiutional Convention ; but I 
cannot certainly name the officers who were chosen. I recollect 
of the organization, and of meeting several times with the movers 
in the matter, who were Gov; Doty, Gen. W. R. Smith, Mar- 
shall M. Strong, and, I think, Henry S. Baird, and others 
rdo not think much was done other than making an organization. " 

Such are the recollections of Hon. Geo. Hyer, Hon. A. Hyatt 
Smith, and Hon. D. A. J. Upham, relative to the first organiza- 
tion of the Society, E. M. Williamson remembers about this 
early organization, and of being chosen treasurer ; but pleasantly 
adds, that '^ not the first red cent ever passed into the treasury." 
Gen. Simeon Mills also remembers that a society was organized 
prior to the present one, and that Hon. M. L. Martin, as well as 
he remembers, was made President. 

The files of Madison and other papers of that day, which we 
have in the Society, throw no light upon this early organization, 
or of its subsequent meetings. This is accounted for in part, 
from the infrequency of their publication, and also from the care- 
lessness of the Secretary, who long since migrated to San Fran- 
cisco, and died there. There is no hope that the records, if any 
were ever made, of these early movements, are now extant. 



Letters of Hon. H. S. Baird aud Hon. M, L. Martin do not 
throw any light upon this early organization, except to convey thg 
impression, that there was a meeting of the Society during the 
session of the second Constitutional Convention — probably in 
January, 1848 — at which Gen. Wii. R. Smith was chosen Pres' 
ident for the ensuing year, and Hon. M. L. Martin one of the 
Vice-Presidents. Gen. David Atwood has a distinct remem- 
brance of such a meeting during that winter — his first winter at 
the capital. But the meeting was probably poorly j^ttended, and 
the interest waning, as this is the last we hear of the old organi- 
zation ; and may safely set it down as having died a premature 
death, like many similar institutions before and after it, for want 
of proper care, nourishment and attention. Yet, doubtless, it 
had its influence in keeping the subject alive ; so that after a 
twelvemonth interim, it was revived under more auspicious cir- 
cumstances. 

"There may," writes Gen. W. R. Smith, "have been a dozen 
meetings on the desired object — they all ^TO\ed aboriivs ; the 
only meeting that produced a real birth was that which was held 
in the Senate Chamber, on the evening of January 30th, 1849 ;" 
and, alluding to Mr. Lapham's statement, that we are indebted to 
Hon. Eleazer Root for " the first eflicient movement " for the 
establishment of a Historical Society, Gen. Smith adds : " I 
cannot help but think it hard to be deprived of the little merit — 
if, indeed, any such there be — of having been mainly instru- 
mental in the formation of the Society." 

Hon. M. Frank, of Kenosha, writes : " I recollect hearing 
Prof. E. Root advocate the formation of such a society; but who 
was the actual originator, I have no recollections, or means of 
determining." Hon, Geo. Reed, who, with Col. Frank, also 
participated in the organization of January, 1849, states that he 
remembers that Mr. Root was active in that movement. 

Rev. Alfred Brunson writes : " I do not recollect seeing 
Mr. Root at the organization of the State Historical Society in 



28 

1849 ; nor do I remember who, if any one, started the ball. It 
ssemed to me rather simultaneous with a number of persons. Gen. 
W. R. Smith was a prominent man, and the first to deliver a set 
address upon the history of Wisconsin ; but it rather seems to me 
that we had a conversation on the subject before he came into it. 
When the ball was put in motion, he, of course, gave it a heavy 
kick." 

Hon. M. L. Martin writes : " It seems to me, that Gen. 
Smith had more to do in getting up the present Society than any 
other single individual." 

Hon. John Y. Smith, while under the impression, that in con- 
sequence of the notices of the newspaper press, and the effort at 
an organization in 1846, that the movement of 1849 was rather 
simultaneous in its character ; yet he would think that Gen. 
Smith, from his well-known historical and antiquarian tastes, 
was among the earliest and most active in the enterprise. 

Gen. H. C. Hobart writes : " You have asked me to give my 
recollections as to the person whe first substantially started the 
idea of forming a State Historical Society in Wisconsin. I well 
recollect the circumstances which surrounded and moved us at the 
time of the first organization, in 1849. It was talked about some 
time before it was founded ; and I give it as my deliberate opin- 
ion, that any one may well hesitate to claim that he started the 
idea. There never will be any doubt about the real father who 
laid the foundation of its prosperity, and who deserves, and will 
receive, that high position in the history of Wisconsin." 

On the evening of January 29th, 1849, a preliminary meeting 
was held at the American Hotel, Hon. John Y. Smith presiding, 
and E. M. Williamson acting as Secret ary. Hon. E. Root stated 
the object of the meeting — to take into consideration measures 
for the formation of a State Historical Society. A meeting for 
such an organization was called for the next evening, and the 
Secretary was directed to invite suitable persons to address that 
meeting. 



29 

The speakers at tlie meeting on the evening of the 30th, in the 
Senate Chamber^ were Hon. C. H. Larrabee, Hon. Samuel 
Crawford, Gen. Wm. R. Smith, and Rev. Alfred Brunson. 
Gen. Smith's speech was evidently prcparedwith most care, as it 
alone was published in the Madison papers, filling three-quarters 
of a column. The Society was organized, a constitution adopted 
and officers elected ; and yet truth extorts the confession, that for 
the following four years scarcely any better success attended the 
Society than during the organization of 1846, But on the 18th of 
Jan., 1854, the Society was re-organized, a new constitution adopt- 
ed, frequent meetings provided for, a live system of operations 
agreed upon, which, with the annual appropriation soon after se- 
cured from the Legislature, gave it a vitality it never before pos- 
sessed ; and from that day the State Historical Society of 
Wisconsin entered upon a career of prosperity and usefulness 
second to none in the Union. L. C. D. 



APPENDIX— Xo. 2. 



PRESENT CONDITION OF THE SOCIETY. 



state historical society. 

The State Historical Society, which is in process of removal 
into the suit of rooms prepared for the reception of its Library 
and collections in the south wing of the Capitol, will now, more 
than ever, from its irfCreased accessibility and conveniences, prove 
its usefulness to the State officers. Courts, Legislature, and citizens 
of the State. It is, for all practical purposes, the historical, sta- 
tistical and miscellaneous department of the State Library. The 
Society is subserving a useful object in gathering up the scattered 



30 

fragments of our eventful history, and has deservedly secured a 
high reputation throughout our country, for the energy and suc- 
cess which have thus far characterized its efforts. Its Library 
now numbers 21,366 volumes, bound and unbound, of which over 
eleven hundred are bound newspaper volumes, with a creditable 
gallery of portraits of Wisconsin pioneers and prominent Indiaa 
Chiefs, and a fine cabinet of curiosities. It has now become a 
source of great pride to all the citizens of the State who are ac- 
quainted with its excellence. If the State would grant the 
Society the privilege of issuing a volume of collections once in 
three years, it would be the medium of preserving many valuable 
narratives of our gallant Wisconsin soldiers in the war for the 
preservation of the Union. I commend this matter to your res- 
pectful consideration. — Gov. Fairchild^s Mesiage, Jan. 11, 1866: 

THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 

The formal opening of the new and permanent Library Rooms 
of the State Historical Society, which takes place this evening, 
renders some sketch of the rise and progress of the Society ap- 
propriate. 

The Society was organized in this city, on the 30th of January, 
1849. Little was done, however, beyond a mere organization 
until January, 1854. At that time the Society was re-organ- 
ized. There were then fifty volumes, all of which were State 
laws, journals of the legislature, and public documents, ex- 
cept two volumes of the Transactions of the American Ethnol- 
ogical Society, and a volume on American bibliographical litera- 
ture. A small book case, three and a half feet wide and four feet 
high was amply large enough to contain these five years collec- 
tions. 

During the first year after the organization, the book-case was 
removed from the Executive rooms to the oflice of tbe Secretary 
of State, and was under the charge of Dr, J. W. Hunt, since 
deceased. That year 1,000 volumes and over 1,000 pamphlets 
were added o it. The small book-case would no longer suflSce. 



31 

The corresponding Secretary, Mr, Lyman C. Draper, was oblig- 
ed to open the doors of his private residence to make room for 
the collection. In 1855, a small room in the corner of the base- 
ment of the Baptist church was secured for the collection. Here 
from year to year it grew, until nearly the entire basement was 
occupied. The rooms, however, were dark, damp and dingyi 
From them the- collection has recently been removed to the airy 
and beautiful rooms assigned to the Society in the new Capitol. 

The Library now numbers 21,366 volumes, bound and unbound 
of which 1,136 are bound newspaper files. Of the latter, 138 
were published in the last century, several of them by Dr. Frank 
LIN, and one volume in the century preceding. The Society has 
moreover, sixty oil paintings, mostly portraits ; over 400 atlases 
maps and diagrams, some of them giving us the vague ideas en 
tertained of the American continent nearly two hundred years ago 
The Society also has an exceedingly interesting collection of me 
mentoes and relics of the recent war, and many curious articles 
both natural and artificial, sent it from various sections of the 
State. 

Few if any similar societies in the country can show so rapid a 
progress. It is indeed one of the most creditable institutions of 
the State, and deserves to receive its fostering care. — State Jour- 
nal, Jan 24, 1866. 



OFFICERS OF THE SOCIETY. 

1 8 G 6 — ♦ «? 8 . 



I'RESIDEXT ; 



INCREASE A. L APH AM, LL. D., Milwaukee. 

VICE PRESIDENTS : 

Gen. WM. R. SMITH, Mineral Point, Hon. JAS. T. LEWIS, Columbus, 
Hon. HENRY S. BAIRD, Green Bay, Hon. HARL. S. ORTON, Milwaukee, 
Hon. ED. SALOMON, Milwaukee, lion. L. J. FARWELL, Westport, 
Hon. JAS. R. DOOLITTLE, Racine, Hon. ANG. CAMERON, La Crosse, 
Hon. WALT. D. McINDOE, Wausau, Hon. WM. A. LAWRENCE, Janesville. 

Recordhig Secretary— Qo\. S. V. SHIPMAN. 
Corresponding Secretary — LYMAN C. DRAPER. 
Treasurer— 0. M. CONOVER. 
ii6mna7i— DANIEL S. DURRIE. 



curators: 




For Two Years. 


For One Tear. 


Dv. C. B. CHAPMAN, 


Hon. JAMES ROSS, 


Hon. D. J. POWERS, 


Prof. J. D. BUTLER, 


Dr. JOS. HOBBINS, 


S. G. BENEDICT, 


Gen. SIMEON MILLS, 


S. H. CARPENTER, 


F. G. TIBBITS, 


E. W. SKINNER, 


WALDO ABEEL, 


Hon. GEO. HYER, 


Gen. G.P.DELAPLAINE, J. D. GURNEE, 


S. U. PINNEY, 


N. B. VAN SLYKE, 


Hon. GEO. B.SMITH, 


Hon. D. WORTHINGTON 



For Tliree Years. 
Gov. L. FAIRCHILD, 
Hon. E. B. DEAN, Jr., 
Prof. E. S. CARR, 
JOHN H. CLARK, 
CoL E. A. CALKINS, 
CoLF. H.FIRMIN, 
Hon. L. B. VILAS, 
Gen. D. ATWOOD, 
HORACE RUBLEE, 



Objects of Collection. — The Society earnestly solicits of every editor 
and publisher of a newspaper or periodical in the State the regular trans- 
mission of such publication ; Books and pamphlets on all subjects of in- 
terest or reference ; Magazines ; Newspaper Files ; Maps"; Engravings ; 
Portraits of Wisconsin pioneers and other prominent personages ; War and 
Indian relics, and other curiosities ; Narratives of Early Settlement, Hard- 
ships, Border Wars, and of incidents connected with the part borne by 
Wisconsin men in the late war of the rebellion. 



H» 107 89 



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